Editorial: Green light for Market Street’s new plan

2of 2Cars and cyclists pass pedestrians on Ninth and Market streets. San Francisco is planning a new design for Market that would ban private cars and add bike lanes.Photo: Leah Millis, The Chronicle

Market Street should be San Francisco’s grandest public boulevard. But for too long it’s been frustrating and underwhelming for businesses, pedestrians, public transit riders, drivers and bicyclists.

Now the city has a big new multiagency plan to redesign Market Street. The plan, which was developed over eight years, is certainly ambitious: It would ban private cars, including drivers for Uber and Lyft, from 10th Street east to the Embarcadero, and add continuous protected lanes devoted to bicycles and to Muni vehicles.

Will the major makeover provide San Francisco with the user-friendly thoroughfare it needs?

Project manager Simon Bertrang emphasized that the plan isn’t set in stone yet: The city is still collecting feedback from the public and local businesses.

“We have an extensive public process to complete, and we still need to finish our studies of traffic and transportation impacts,” Bertrang said. “We’re well aware of everyone’s concerns that this project be as successful as possible, with the least amount of disruption as possible.”

Getting the details right will be crucial. There’s no way to redesign Market Street without a fair amount of disruption, and Bay Area residents are fed up with traffic congestion. Many Market Street business owners, already smarting from the effects of the endless Central Subway construction, also have short fuses.

But much of Market Street’s infrastructure is aging. Because San Francisco has no choice but to fix it, why not take the opportunity to implement new solutions to Market Street’s problems?

At the top of the list would be making Market Street safer and more useful for pedestrians and public transportation.

Drivers may be angry about being banned from Market Street, but the truth is they’re not the most important audience there. Putting first the needs of the half-million transit riders who arrive on Market every day will result in more reliable public transit and better pedestrian safety — and those are the city’s goals.

As for the continuous bike lane, San Francisco needs to continue having discussions about traffic enforcement of bicyclists. But bicycling is a sustainable, low-impact form of transportation, and it’s an increasingly popular way to commute. Creating a safe environment for bicycles is a positive aim for the Market Street plan.

As San Francisco continues developing the Market Street plan, it will have to pay close attention to all of the public’s concerns. But as a sign about the direction the city’s headed in, this plan is on the right track.